By Sterling McGinn
After major issues with the Tahquamenon Logging Museum’s (TLM) cook shack floor were discovered, the museum board of directors was forced to cancel the famous Lumberjack Breakfasts in May, June, and July 2025, which is one of the main sources of income for the museum.
After several months of repairs, a new floor was installed, and TLM officials said that the August Lumberjack Breakfast will take place.
Support structures for the floor were discovered to be rotten, likely because the ground around the museum is wet during parts of the year.
“It was really wet under the floor—they were native timbers and they simply rotted away to the point they needed to be replaced,” said board Secretary/Treasurer Dixie Stewart. “One of the main support boards was broken.”
Alvin Miller and his crew from Engadine took out the old floor and installed the new material. Work began in early July; however, the project was delayed for approximately three weeks while the material was being made.
“Custom boards had to be made and dry kilned,” said Stewart. “The workers were very efficient—they had the old floor out in one day and installed the new one in just a little over a day,” she said.
The work also entailed removing and reinstalling the 12-burner wood cook stove, which is a staple of the breakfasts. The stove is an authentic piece that came from the Peacock Farm in Hulbert.
“They used a pallet jack and had it out in no time,” Stewart said. “They put in on the porch until it was time to put it back in.”
The museum also installed solar-powered fans for more ventilation in the crawl space.
Stewart stated that people have been anxious for the breakfasts to return. Now that the work has been completed, the museum will host their first breakfast of 2025 on Saturday, August 23 from 7 a.m. to noon.
